39 Photos That Prove Hillary Clinton Is — And Always Has Been — A Total Badass

Hillary Clinton stepped down as Secretary of State on Friday, returning to private life after 31 years in the public eye.

In those three decades, Clinton has gone from one of the country's most divisive political figures to one of its most beloved. As First Lady of Arkansas — and later the United States — and then as a U.S. Senator and 2008 presidential candidate, Clinton navigated policy battles, scandal, and five campaigns, breaking down gender barriers at each step. She endured our ridicule over her fashion choices and our judgement over her marriage, facing down her critics with humor and steely resolve.

The country finally came around to Clinton during her four years as President Barack Obama's Secretary of State. She exits Foggy Bottom today with sky-high approval ratings and a cadre of loyal fans who are ready to spring into action should she decide to run for president again in 2016.

But even if Clinton never returns to politics, her legacy is already established as the most bad-ass chick in Washington.

Hillary Rodham started getting presidential buzz back in 1969, when she delivered the commencement address at Wellesley College.

Wellesley College Archives

The future First Couple looking rad at Yale Law School, where they met in 1971.

The William J. Clinton Presidential Library

Looks like she got him to shave by their wedding day on Oct. 11, 1975.

“You know, I'm not sitting here some little woman standin’ by my man like Tammy Wynette," Hillary Clinton said. "I'm sitting here because I love him, and I respect him, and I honor what he's been through and what we've been through together. And you know, if that's not enough for people, then heck, don't vote for him.”

She's a natural politician. Here she is campaigning for Bill on a New York subway in 1992.

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And here, pulling loaves out of the oven during a campaign stop at a bakery in the Bronx.

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Clinton makes her trademark surprise face at a Miami campaign stop in 1992.

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Letting loose on the campaign bus.

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Never content with traditional First Lady roles, Clinton jumped into the policy fray with a failed attempt at healthcare reform. Here she is with former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop.

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She wasn't above hanging out with Big Bird though.

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Clinton enjoys a moment of solace after falling behind on a run with her husband and Olympic hurdler Edwin Moses.

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Sharing a hearty laugh during a festive Hawaiian vacation in 1993.

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The Clintons always had an eclectic sense of style.

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And they were always game for a photo-op. Here they are drinking Coca-Cola at a factory in Moscow.

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Hillary rocks another fly outfit with her daughter Chelsea at the opening ceremonies of the 1994 Winter Olympics in Norway.

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Seriously. They let the First Family do this.

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The '90s weren't all leis and whitewater rafting though. Here Hillary Clinton accompanies the president to a memorial for the victims of the 1996 Oklahoma City bombing.

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The Clintons weathered their biggest scandal in August 1998, famously holding hands with Chelsea the day after the president admitted he had an inappropriate relationship with Monica Lewinsky.

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But HRC bounced back fast. Here she is donning a veil during a trip to Cairo with Chelsea in 1999.

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In 2000, Clinton launched her first campaign as a candidate, running for Senate in New York. Here she is bowling at a fundraiser in the Port Authority bus terminal.

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Clinton has some very famous friends. Here she is greeting Elton John in 2002 before his Senate testimony on the AIDS epidemic.

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And here she is with Oprah and Kofi Annan in 2004.

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By 2008, she was running for president. After a surprise win in the New Hampshire primary, she tearfully told supporters she had "found her own voice."

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The 2008 campaign made Clinton's cackle famous.

Courtesy of NBC

Clinton finally concedes to Barack Obama in June 2008, telling supporters: "Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it’s got about 18 million cracks in it."

Watch the full speech below:

Clinton took her swagger to another level as Obama's Secretary of State.

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HRC started off with a bang. When someone at a 2009 town hall in Africa asked for Bill's opinion on the economy, Clinton responded: "My husband is not the Secretary of State. I am."

Watch the clip below:

She visited 114 countries as Secretary of State, racking up more than one million flying miles.

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She was in the room with Obama when Osama bin Laden was killed.

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And took the lead for the administration in the Middle East. Here she is chatting with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in March 2012.

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She paid an emotional visit to Burmese opposition leader and Noble Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi in December 2011, becoming the first senior U.S. official to travel to Myanmar in over 50 years.